HIGH DIVE, by Jonathan Lee. (Knopf, $26.95.) The weeks leading up to an I.R.A. bombing in Brighton in 1984, meant to kill Margaret Thatcher, are the focus of this insightful novel.

LAB GIRL, by Hope Jahren. (Knopf, $26.95.) A geobiologist with a literary bent makes her science both accessible and lyrical.

THE WILD ROBOT, by Peter Brown. (Little, Brown, $16.99; ages 8 to 12.) A lively tale about a robot shipwrecked on an island of wild animals.

A version of this article appears in print on , on Page 22 of the Sunday Book Review with the headline: Editors’ Choice | Recent Books of Particular Interest. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe